Google overhauling search engine

Google is introducing a major overhaul of its search engine over the coming months.

The company is introducing "semantic search technology" to provide users with direct answers to their queries, rather than a list of weblinks.

Google will display facts and direct answers on each page in a similar fashion to the Wolfram Alpha: Computational Knowledge Engine, a service that compiles responses from a pool of structured data.

The move will not impact on the firm's keyword search system as the semantic search technology will be integrated with its current set-up. However, websites that reply on Google's page-ranking results could be affected.

It is unclear exactly how Google's search ads will change as a result of the shake-up, but sources close to the company suggest that a greater understanding of search queries would enable it to serve more relevant adverts to users.